[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 91 (Tuesday, May 12, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26204-26206]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-12522]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
Availability of Draft Environmental Assessment, Receipt of
Application for, and Intent To Issue, Incidental Take Permit for
Private Land in Iron County, UT
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of availability, receipt of application for, and intent
to issue permit.
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SUMMARY: Iron County and the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources
(Applicants) have applied to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(Service) for an incidental take permit pursuant to section 10(a)(1)(B)
of the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). The Applicant
has been assigned permit number PRT-MB000142-0. The requested permit,
which is for a period of 20 years, would authorize incidental take of
the Utah Prairie Dog (Cynomys parvidens), a species federally listed as
threatened. The proposed take would occur as a result of development of
private land within Iron County, Utah.
The Service has prepared the Environmental Assessment for issuance
of the incidental take permit. The Applicant has prepared a habitat
conservation plan as part of the incidental take permit application. A
determination of whether jeopardy to the species will occur, or a
finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI), and/or issuance of the
incidental take permit, will not be made before 30 days from the date
of publication of this notice. This notice is provided pursuant to
section 10(c) of the Act and National Environmental Policy Act
regulations (40 CFR 1506.6).
DATES: Written comments on the permit application must be received on
or before June 11, 1998.
ADDRESSES: Persons wishing to review the permit application may obtain
a copy by writing to the Field Supervisor, Utah Ecological Services
Field Office, Fish and Wildlife Service, 145 East 1300 South Street,
Suite 404, Salt Lake City,
[[Page 26205]]
Utah 84115. Documents will be available for public inspection by
written request, or by appointment only, during business hours (8 a.m.
to 4:30 p.m) at the above address.
Written data or comments concerning the permit application should
be submitted to the Field Supervisor, Utah Ecological Services Field
Office, Fish and Wildlife Service Salt Lake City, Utah (see ADDRESSES
above). Please refer to permit number PRT-MB000142-0 in all
correspondence regarding these documents.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marilet A. Zablan, Wildlife Biologist
or Ted W. Owens, Wildlife Biologist, at the above U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service office in Salt Lake City, Utah (See ADDRESSES above)
(telephone: (801) 524-5001, facsimile: (801) 524-5021).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 9 of the Act prohibits the
``taking'' of any threatened or endangered species, such as the
threatened Utah Prairie Dog. However, the Service, under limited
circumstances, may issue permits to take threatened or endangered
wildlife species when such taking is incidental to, and not the purpose
of, otherwise lawful activities. Regulations governing permits for
threatened and endangered species are at 50 CFR 17.22.
The Applicants have submitted an application to the Service for a
permit to incidentally take Utah Prairie Dogs, pursuant to section
10(a)(1)(B) of the Act, in association with various private projects in
Iron County. This permit would allow specified take levels for Utah
Prairie Dogs by non-Federal entities on non-Federal property within the
county when presence of Utah Prairie Dogs hinders legal uses of the
property on which they reside. Details of this alternative are found in
the Iron County/Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (Division) Habitat
Conservation Plan (HCP), dated March 9, 1998. Proposed management
actions including minimizing and mitigating take are described in
detail on pages 30-65 of the HCP. The proposed permit would be in
effect for 20 years. Authorized take would include harm, harassment,
and direct mortality of Utah Prairie Dogs. However, if the Service
determines that the obligations of the Act Section 10(a)(1)(B) permit
are not being met (e.g., unauthorized taking or permit violations by
the cooperators is occurring), the permit may be revoked if remedial
actions are not immediately implemented to alleviate such violations.
Two types of take would occur under this incidental take permit:
(1) ``Permanent'' take where habitat is permanently destroyed, and (2)
``non-permanent'' take, in which the number of Utah Prairie Dogs in a
colony is reduced, but no lasting habitat destruction occurs. Permanent
take from development activities such as residential or commercial
construction, road construction, parking lot development, excavation,
etc., contributes to a net loss of habitat and adversely affects
resident Utah Prairie Dogs and future occupation of the site by Utah
Prairie Dogs. However, it may not necessarily result directly in death
unless Utah Prairie Dogs are hibernating and unable to escape
construction activities. Non-permanent take results in a reduction of
animal numbers, but no net loss of habitat. Non-permanent take may
occur in areas where Utah Prairie Dogs are inhabiting agricultural
lands or pastures, crops, private rangelands, recreation areas, or
where presence of Utah Prairie Dogs interferes with facilities
maintenance. It would also occur where the presence of Utah Prairie
Dogs causes safety concern, as determined by the Implementation
Committee, and areas that were previously cleared through legal means.
Recovery success depends upon continued survival of existing public
land colonies and establishment of new Utah Prairie Dog colonies on
public lands. Therefore, allowable levels of permanent take of habitat
and/or animals on non-Federal property will depend upon successful
creation of new habitat and establishment of Utah Prairie Dogs on
public lands, such that there is at the very least, no loss of habitat
potential. Maximum annual amounts of allowed permanent take would
depend upon:
1. Parameters determined from population modeling to ascertain
levels of take that will not jeopardize the species,
2. Successful establishment of Utah Prairie dogs on public lands,
or long-term conservation of Utah Prairie Dogs on non-Federal lands
(e.g., conservation easements), and
3. Implementation of measures to minimize and mitigate take.
Annual permanent take would be quantified in terms of habitat acres
and number of animals taken. Because Utah Prairie Dogs may no longer
exist at many of the locations on non-Federal lands where they have
been mapped, but habitat remains intact, permanent take would be
limited by either the number of Utah Prairie Dogs or acreage of habitat
permanently taken. When the allowed limit of either acreage of Utah
Prairie Dog number is reached, no further permanent take would be
allowed during that calendar year. The maximum allowed permanent take
of animals would not be more than 10 percent of the average spring
count of adult Utah Prairie Dogs on public lands during the preceding 5
years. The percentage of allowed take would increase to 15 percent once
counts on public lands reach 1,500 adult Utah Prairie Dogs as long as
the other two conditions (number of public land complexes and quantity
of public acreage providing Utah Prairie Dog habitat) are met. The
maximum allowed take of habitat initially would not exceed 1 percent of
the total non-Federal land habitat, and would increase as additional
public land sites become established.
As more acceptable habitat is created/enhanced, and additional Utah
Prairie Dog colonies are established, further permanent take on non-
federally owned habitat would be allowed. Acreage protected through the
establishment of long-term conservation easements on non-Federal
property would count toward the protected land total as well. The
remainder of Utah Prairie Dogs needed for translocation to public lands
would come from non-permanent sources. Utah Prairie Dogs translocated
to recovery sites, although considered taken for purposes of
development, would still be protected under State law and the Act, and
would be afforded full protection of a listed species under the Act.
Maximum allowed permanent take would depend upon implementation of
mitigation efforts and establishment of Utah Prairie Dogs on public
lands and shall not exceed that listed in the Iron County/Division HCP.
Allowable permanent take is expected to always be at least 40
individuals or 400 acres based on current distribution and numbers.
Permanent take that remains unused during 1 year will be credited for
the following year only. Failure to implement mitigation measures will
result in no allowable take.
Non-permanent take would be restricted to Utah Prairie Dogs which
are (1) damaging croplands, pastures, and private rangelands, (2)
reinhabiting previously cleared areas after construction is complete,
(3) damaging recreational areas that remain suitable as habitat (e.g.,
golf course, softball fields), (4) inhibiting effective work in areas
requiring maintenance (e.g., roads), (5) inhabiting sensitive areas
(e.g., cemeteries, archaeological sites), and (6) compromising safety
concern areas (e.g., airport runway) as identified by the
Implementation Committee. In non-permanent take situations, as many
Utah Prairie Dogs as can be accommodated at translocation sites
[[Page 26206]]
will be live-trapped and translocated. In situations where
translocation sites cannot accommodate demand, landowners may be issued
limited permits under the Act Section 4(d) rule, to remove the
remaining allowed animals by shooting or trapping.
In the case of areas previously developed which have not undergone
an Act Section 10 clearance, but which have become occupied by Utah
Prairie Dogs, the area would be treated similarly to undeveloped sites.
If a landowner wanted Utah Prairie Dogs removed in order to conduct
otherwise lawful activities he/she would be required to conduct a
clearance survey, complete an assessment of take, and schedule to have
Utah Prairie Dogs trapped and translocated. Annual reports summarizing
the impacts of the Proposed Action would be submitted to the Service by
the Iron County Commission and the Division.
Because of the patchy distribution of Utah Prairie Dogs in Iron
County, as well as the large percentage of occupied habitat and numbers
of Utah Prairie Dogs on non-Federal lands, development of a county-wide
HCP was analyzed. A county-wide HCP (1) allows for establishment of
long-term levels of take and cumulative effects monitoring, (2) reduces
costs of individuals land owners, (3) allows for planning and reduces
time delays for builders, (4) facilitates cooperation between local,
State, and Federal agencies and individuals, and (5) does not preclude,
and may be designed to promote, Utah Prairie Dog recovery.
A no-action alternative to the proposed action was considered. This
would result in no lawful development in Utah Prairie Dog habitat
unless each individual landowner who wanted to develop his/her property
submitted an application for, and was subsequently issued, an Act
section 10 incidental take permit. In order to lawfully develop within
Utah Prairie Dog Habitat, each individual landowner would also be
required to develop and implement a habitat conservation plan. The non-
action alternative was rejected for reasons including loss of use of
the private property resulting in significant economic loss to County
residents and excessive expense, in both time and money, for County
residents and Service employees who must process each individual permit
and ensure its suitability. The Applicants also considered an
alternative which would require the purchase (in fee title or of
conservation easements), preservation, and long-term management of
existing Utah Prairie Dog habitat on land currently owned by private
entities. However, this alternative was rejected for a number of
reasons. First, such a configuration of Utah Prairie Dog habitat would
have poor potential for genetic exchange among isolated Utah Prairie
Dog colonies and would therefore probably not be conducive to long-term
maintenance and recovery of the species. It would also disturb local
and land-use patterns to an unacceptable degree. Finally, costs
associated with land acquisition may be prohibitive.
Authority: The authority for this action is the Endangered
Species Act of 1973, as amended (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) and the
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (42 U.S.C.
4321 et seq.).
Dated: May 6, 1998.
Terry Terrell,
Regional Director, Region 6.
[FR Doc. 98-12522 Filed 5-11-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-M
